Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Only the Dead Live Here!

Goodbye to June, hello July! If you got the THOIA memo yesterday then you know a little something about what to expect for this glorious new month of the macabre. Seriously, we've got tons’a great stuff lined up... but be warned, there are a few additional surprises in store as well.

And what better way to kick it all off than with a super spooky Everett Raymond Kinstler classic from the Dec-Jan ‘52/’53 issue of Eerie #10

THE SPLASH IS INCREDIBLE AND VERY HAUNTING, LOVE THE VERY LAST PANEL TOO AND THE ONE ON THE BOTTOM LEFT OF PAGE 4. SO MUCH GOOD STUFF HERE, GREAT SET UP, NICE PAY OFF. A PERFECT STORY! I'LL DEFINITELY BE LOOKING INTO THAT KINSTER BOOK.THANKS!

Very cool haunted house tale! I particularly like the expressive lettering, for instance when Tom says "CORPSES!" on pg. 5--though my LOL favorite has to be the STRANGE SILENCE! on pg. 2.

Great art--the face at the bottom of pg. 4 is the standout, as has already been said, but call me a softie, I love the well-turned ankles at the top of pg. 3! Hubba hubba! Also, the clock figurine in the foreground at the top of pg. 5 is very creepy and cool. However, what's up with Alice's face at the bottom of 5? Seems like someone was in a hurry.

And what can you say about the writing here? "Left them weltering in their gore!" THAT'S the way you do it, Ezra! I also got a chuckle out of Tom's incredulity on pg. 3: "Why should people hide from us?" I dunno...maybe because you're INTRUDERS, in the middle of the night?

Looking forward to more fun this month! And not to hijack the thread, but if you can't use Karswell to pimp your stuff, it's a sad state...

Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies is having a contest celebrating our 100th review, scheduled for Thursday. If you're interested in winning some free movies for nothing more than the cost of an email, cruise on by. Full details here.

Great story, amazing graphics! I know the lettering has already been mentioned, and I feel the need to underscore how very nifty this is. Also, those footprints on page 2 are way cool--I love the literalness of this design choice. Very nice stuff indeed.

I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Kinstler at the 2006 San Diego Con and get my copy of his retrospective book signed. A great artist and person plus I couldn't believe the number of legendary artists/illustrators the man has met in his life!

Your Horrible Host of Horrors

(aka Steve Banes) Editor / co-editor of IDW's Chilling Archives of Horror Comic Books: ZOMBIES, RETURN OF THE ZOMBIES, and DEVIL TALES, as well as co-host of the bi-monthly HAUNTED HORROR comic series and HAUNTED LOVE miniseries. (All image scans and photography by me from items found in my own personal, putrid collection-- except where noted.)

"...the capital of online comic book horrors... saying "Not the best story THOIA has run" is a bit like saying "one of Beethoven's lesser symphonies!"---Quasar Dragon

"...the object of all horror chicks' wet dreams... a comixkaze of awesome!"---Killer Kittens

"...an online repository of vintage comic fear fare where individual stories from long out-of-print issues are posted in high resolution, page by page. For a fan of EC, Atlas and other Silver Age-era comic companies, it is pure heaven (and hell)..."---Bryan Reesman (Attention Deficit Delirium)